I’m focusing my capstone project on police brutality against the black community in the United States. The fight against racism, socio-economic inequality in black communities, and violence against black people is what inspired the Black Power Movement as well as all the organizations that spawned from that. For example, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense … Continue reading “We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.” -Martin Luther King, Jr. “I Have a Dream” speech, 1963
“A Revolutionary and A Mother”
When I was doing research for this week’s blog post, I came across a few interesting articles centered around former Black Panther Party member, Afeni Shakur. Aside from being the mother of hip-hop legend, Tupac Shakur, Afeni Shakur is credited with being one of the most well-known members of the Black Panther Party. She joined … Continue reading “A Revolutionary and A Mother”
White Supremacy in Watchmen
On Sunday, the first episode of the new series Watchmen was released on HBO. The shows takes place in present time instead of 1986 as in the comics. It takes places in an alternate reality that includes squids that rain from the sky, cops who hide their identities for their protection, and a utopia of … Continue reading White Supremacy in Watchmen
Spike Lee on Black Power
We started off the semester with Amiri Baraka railing against Spike Lee, claiming that he is antithetical to what Black Power stood for. To be honest, Baraka is not exactly wrong. In Lee's Clockers, the main message of the movie is that black people should stop using guns (A belief that directly contradicts the one … Continue reading Spike Lee on Black Power
Backlash Blues
Hey everyone, so since we are on fall break now, I’ve generally been just relaxing and listening to more music, and one song that I found that really stuck out to me is the song “Backlash Blues” by Nina Simone. As I’ve stated, she is what I am interested in doing my research project over, … Continue reading Backlash Blues
What’s in a Name?
Who do you see when you read these names? Brian, Brett, James, Frank, William, Ryan, Kyle, Cody. Andre, Darnell, Trevon, Darryl, Tyrone, Jamal, Darius, Dominique. Kaitlin, Linda, Emily, Jenna, Hannah, Catherine, Emma, Allison. Deja, Diamond, Asia, Aliyah, Jada, Tierra, Tiara, Yvonne. If you noticed a pattern or understand where I'm going, understand that there is … Continue reading What’s in a Name?
Raisin Fuller Lincoln Karenga
I’d like to start with my title before getting to my initial thoughts. Matthew brought up a good point about Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem “The Life of Lincoln West” not being about a real person butt instead being a mash-up of Lincoln and West. I thought the idea of creating a new name and naming something … Continue reading Raisin Fuller Lincoln Karenga
Afrofuturism in Music
While I know I am a little late in the game on this topic, I thought it was still important to touch on the subject of Afrofuturism and its relevance in music from the past and from today. When researching, the simplest definition of Afrofuturism that I could find was, "a movement that re-envisions black … Continue reading Afrofuturism in Music
My Project
Hello Again Reader, I think I have figured out my topic. I am abandoning the Racism in Mainstream Drag project. It was a fun idea but I don’t think I could make a good project out of it. What I will be pursuing instead is the topic of black beauty in the current day and … Continue reading My Project
WHAT TO DO?
You know the problem about being in the middle of the semester? Things that are acceptable at the beginning of the semester don’t seem to matter so much by the middle. I imagine that is universal for all students. I am fascinated by people who maintain a healthy balance with work and school. I guess … Continue reading WHAT TO DO?
L460: The Senior Capstone Blog at IUS 